Soul Glitches
by Ethereal Wanderer
Summary: Because James Vega deserves some lovin'. It's a James X OC, with a Fem Shepard x Kaidan in the background. Starts exactly with the opening of Mass Effect 3. You may also find this on tumblr. Hope you enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

So this will have 15-20 chapters max. The first two chapters follow the beginning of Mass Effect 3, more to give perspective as to where Jun (oc) sits into the universe, then it mostly focuses on private moments between missions and stuff like that.

Writing this purely for fun, so_ hope you enjoy it as well!_

* * *

Jun sat in a dark corner of the hallway, right leg bouncing rapidly for the past half hour. Shepard's hearing was being delayed and it couldn't mean anything good. Officers were rushing in and out of the main chamber, each wearing a perfect mask of calmness on their faces, but the hurried steps and careful whispers were a clear indication something was up. But there was no way in hell they were going to actually charge the commander with anything, right? After all, they were saved, once more, because of her.

She thought back on the last mission, the one that all thought was going to be a one way trip through the Omega 4 relay and cold shiver ran through her spine. Maybe they were pushing their luck a little, but facts were facts and all of them painted Shepard as a god dammed hero. She was bought out of her momentary trance when a ruckus came down the hall. Soon enough she spotted the commander, her confident stride making the lower ranked officers part out of her way. Getting up from her spot in the shadows she joined the other woman in her march towards the hearing, completely ignoring the marine in her tow.

"Something's up, Shepard."

"Any idea what?"

"No. Whatever it is, they're keeping it tight." They paused and shared a look. Something was brewing in Shepard's mind; you could almost see the cogs running in overtime. Jun was about to ask what was the plain if things went south when the heavy doors slid open revealing none other than Kaidan Alenko. Now, she didn't have anything against the lieutenant per se, but he could be such an ass. She knew for a fact the commander was head over heels for the guy and she just couldn't see why… First human specter, war hero and the best damn leader she served under and the woman chose that chump…

She sighed, spacing out their entire conversation, pondering on love and its apparent unique ability to make even the greatest people dumb. When Anderson came and escorted the commander, she gave Jun one last look and she nodded: she'd be waiting right there, ready to bust them out if needed. If the Alliance refused to see the reapers as a real and imminent threat they'd find help somewhere else.

"You know the commander?

"I used to." Jun scoffed a little too loudly, making the two men turned towards her with questioning looks.

"You're such a moron, I swear…"

"Good to see you again, Jun."

"If only it were mutual."

"Look, I'm so-"

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, you dimwit." Kaidan gaze fell to the ground, shaking his head.

"I get it _you two_ know each other."

"Unfortunately." She eyed the recently promoted major with all the disgust she could muster until Kaidan let out a defeated sigh and went on his merry way. She told herself again that she did not truly hate the guy, but it was getting harder and harder not to. As strong as Shepard was, his mistrust in her had left a mark no matter how hard she denied it. Shaking her head to get Alenko out of her mind, she turned towards the marine and extended her hand towards him.

"I'm sorry for that, he just really gets on my nerves. I'm Jun Saros." He shook her hand with a steady grip and she couldn't help notice the veins along his forearm. Damn he was bulky.

"Lieutenant James Vega. You two got history?"

"God no! He's just the biggest drama queen when you least expect it." He eyed her up and down, a smirk forming in the corner of his lips. Damn that scar was sexy.

"His loss." Jun was taken aback by the comment, but found herself smiling nevertheless. With all that had transpired in the past years, her accident, Cerberus, the Collectors, she found his little quip refreshing. A dip in normality. When was the last time she just chatted with someone without looming threats over their shoulder?

She raised an eyebrow, lips parted to give him a comeback, but her words were drowned down by an explosion. The ground shook violently, windows clattering and breaking. Outside, massive shadows were landing in the distance, red lasers shooting in every direction. Jun turned to reach the hearing room, but was interrupted when an entire section of the wall collapsed, blocking the door. She was grabbed by her shoulder non too gently by James and pulled along further down the corridor as alarms started going off and people dashed towards safety. She tried the com link as she barely kept up with the marine's pace.

"Shepard?"

"Jun, Anderson and I are cut off the main exit. Head towards the landing zone and meet us at the Normandy."

"Understood." She looked one more at the reaper just outside the city lines and cursed under her breath. They were nowhere near prepared for this! "Vega, we need to get to the Normandy."

The man nodded and took a sharp left making Jun almost loose her balance when she spun at the last second. If the building wasn't collapsing behind them she would have laughed at the silliness of it. James led them towards the exit, or better said to what was once the exit. A metal plaque cut through the doorway, wires spiking with electricity dangling from the sides. She took her omni-tool and cast a shield around them, giving the marine a curt nod before heading outside.

To say the city was in shambles would have been the understatement of the century. Barely any buildings stood unscathed, shuttles were evacuating civilians as military airships were going headfirst towards the reaper forces. She didn't have much time to register everything as James took off, jumping on a railing and turning towards her, hand outstretched.

"Come on!" Purposefully avoiding to look closer at the unstable looking path he'd chosen, Jun took his hand reluctantly. They were sitting ducks there, but the open space and the reaper in the distance made her stomach turn.

"How much further?"

"Are you scared of heights, princess?"

"Less of heights, more of giant lasers and being burned alive, you know?" He might have chuckled, but it was hard for her to tell between the explosions, alarms and people screaming. She turned towards a group of officers trying to pry off a metal chunk of a colleague's leg. The decision was made in a split second.

"We're almost ther- what are you doing?" She jumped down on the level below, preparing her onmi-tool and kneeling down besides the man.

"This should stop the bleeding, but you should still get him checked…" The words died in her throat. In all this madness there was little hope they would manage to get him a doctor anytime soon. The soldiers seemed to acknowledge this as well.

"Thank you ma'am. This will give him some more time." They hauled the poor unconscious guy over their shoulders and ducked for cover as a laser was shot towards them. It felt like she was hit by a train when James rolled them behind a sturdy looking column, the air leaving her lungs. She grasped his arms for support as she desperately tried to get some oxygen back in.

"Sorry…" James took in her form once more. She was lean, but nowhere near in military shape, her hands delicate on his rough skin. He felt bad for manhandling her, yet couldn't help wonder how she got mixed in on the Normandy's crew. He remembered her name in the reports, but couldn't recall if there was any mentions of her training.

"No, n-"The words stuck in her throat and she coughed a bit more before regaining a steady breathing, her grip loosening. "Thank you. Beats being burned alive."

"Right, let's get moving." He could have gotten to the ship already if he were on his own, he wanted to get to the action and blast those sons of bitches off their planet as quickly as possible. But he couldn't leave Shepard's little friend behind. The commander and Anderson seemed to trust her.

The Normandy came into view and they made a run for it. He jumped on the air lock and turned to help the woman, but she was already midair, a little drone pushing at her back. She dusted off when she landed besides him and raised an eyebrow at the look she was giving him.

"What? I'm more capable than I look." She put out her tongue in a child like protest and he wondered again how she survived that suicide mission. Dumb luck was all he could think of. They headed further inside the ship, in hopes Shepard and Anderson would have already gotten there, when a voice sounded through the ship's coms.

"Jun! Good to have you back on the Normandy."

"Joker, I already feel safer." James followed her to the elevator, unsure of the ship's layout. "Are Shepard and Anderson here?"

"We're picking them up now. You should get to the war room, the commander will be there soon."

It didn't take long between the moment they arrived in the room, the ship turning away from Earth, the commander entering, no Anderson in sight, and admiral Hackett's message. He didn't like the situation one bit. Leaving Earth was a coward move, even if the admiral had ordered them to Mars, James was not a part of Shepard's crew, he should have stayed with Anderson and fought for his planet! He was not stupid, he knew they most likely stood no chance without help from the aliens, but his fight was not in the politics of the Citadel, it was on the ground, were his people were being slaughtered. The heavy silence after the admiral's message was finally intercepted by Jun as she got up with a sigh.

"Starboard Observation Deck is MINE this time!"


	2. Chapter 2

Everyone was a little on edge on the Normandy. Jun understood the situation perfectly, they were facing extinction against a force they couldn't even begin to comprehend. But there was little for them to be back on Earth and that was fact. No need to waste their lives in pointless combat when they could achieve so much more elsewhere and perhaps even save their planet. Still as she entered the Shuttle bay and saw the lieutenant fuming, her little speech seemed redundant.

"You know it's not a decision she took lightly, right?"

"You need something?" Well, rude. And there she was trying to give him a pep talk. She crossed her arms and looked at him unimpressed.

"We're landing on Mars soon. The commander wants us ready," He only gave her a nod and went to gather his armor. She opened her mouth to add more, reassure him they were going to get back to earth in no time, but she noticed he was pulling his shirt off and doubled back quickly into the shuttle to wait for the rest. Her right leg bounced with the usual rhythm of her impatience. She had hoped they'd have more time between the Collectors and the reaper attack, but all things considered, they probably quickened the process. An ever grumpy lieutenant entered the shuttle and took the seat at the controls. She eyed him cautiously, the anger still visible under his skin. She wasn't sure what approach to go, sincere and heartfelt or a wakeup-call slap to reality. She didn't get the chance to reply.

"I'm sorry I snapped. It's just… I feel useless here." He gripped the armrests tightly, desperate to keep the fury under control. Jun got up and placed her hand tentatively on his shoulder.

"Look, I get it, you wish you were down there, fighting for your planet. Believe me, Shepard would be right alongside Anderson is she didn't believe what we're doing here was more important. And besides, we'll be in some tough shit of our own before you know it, you just wait and see. You'll get your chance to shoot reapers." She patted his shoulder and crouched just a bit to grab his attention. He turned his head to face her, her eyes stopping on his scars before meeting his. "We'll get Earth back, but we can't do it alone."

He held her gaze for a moment longer and nodded. Despite the lack of words, she thought maybe she helped, even if just a little. In truth, she didn't really understand what he was feeling. Earth was never her home, just the mother planet of humans. As long as humans survived, did the planet really matter? Her chain of thought was interrupted when the shuttle door opened and Shepard and Alenko jumped in. She couldn't help giving the major the stink eye.

"Oh great, you made it too."

"Play nice, Jun." The commander shot them both a warning look before getting back to business. "We can't reach anyone on the ground, but there are no signs of reaper activity, so best guess is the workers were evacuated. With our luck though, be prepared for anything."

James landed the shuttle and they stepped on the reddish ground of Mars. Jun was not sure if it usually looked so eerie, but she made a note to herself to never step on the planet again; the desolated expanse and weird hue gave her chills.

"Kaidan, James, with me. Jun, you know what you have to do." The lieutenant turned towards the woman, curious why she wasn't joining them. Surely it was safer if she stuck with them. A few key punches on the onmi-tool and she was gone in thin air. Her voice came from behind him, soft as to not startle him, but playful.

"Don't worry, I'll be close by to save your asses." She thought about actually smacking his ass, but decided against it. With all that armour she doubted he'd have noticed anyway.

It would have been too easy if the facility were empty and all they had to do was walk to the Archives, find Liara, grab whatever reaper killing weapon and ditch that red rock. Things were rarely easy in life; another time and time again proven fact. The first Cerberus soldiers fell like flies between the ground team's shots. Jun sad a safe distance away, cloaked and behind cover and worked her hacking magic, disabling enemy shields and frying circuits.

James was proving difficult to follow, one moment behind a barricade, the other charging towards enemy troops. She was almost caught off guard when a mech dropped besides him, guns pointed and ready. She deployed her fastest drone, momentarily paralyzing the mech and buying the marine just enough time to roll to cover and start shooting.

They dropped the remaining Cerberus and made their way inside the building, Jun letting her cloak down, annoyance written all over her face.

"Dammit, Vega!" She punched him in the arm, hurting her knuckles more than anything. The bastard had the audacity to chuckle.

"Careful, princess, you're gonna break a nail."

"Okay, next time I'll just let them shoot you."

"You break my heart when you're so mean." She had to admit she didn't mind the friendly banter, borderline flirting. She took a step closer, smile playing on her lips, but it quickly died down when she heard the commander and major arguing about Cerberus. She groaned loudly and James turned his head towards the two as well. "At it again…"

Heavy banging came from the air ducks moments late. Liara came crashing down and blasted the Cerberus soldiers after her. They never actually spoke much, but Jun knew Liara helped Shepard with the geth and stopping Saren, before her own time with the Normandy crew. She placed a hand on James' weapon and he lowered it slowly, still cautions of the asari.

Jun thought the mission will be over faster now that their little party was expanding. They knew they were after a blueprint, so she just needed access to a terminal. They'd go to the Citadel, build the damn thing and make the reapers a thing of history. Her little bubble of hope was dissolved when Shepard spoke.

"Jun, James you head back to the shuttle."

"But- you know best commander." She turned to leave, but the lieutenant was not so easily convinced.

"That's bullshit. We're coming."  
"I need you to cover our exit."

"Come on, James." He let go of the matter shaking his head and joining in step with Jun. Their trek to the shuttle was silent, her mind filled with a kind of uncertainty she didn't quite liked or understood until he spoke it out loud.

"Feels like we've been benched in favor of the O.G. Normandy crew."

"I wasn't benched… and if anything, I'm the original Shepard crew." She muttered the last part under her breath, half hoping he didn't catch it.

"Oh, do tell. I don't remember reading much about you in the report."

"You've read about me, lieutenant? I'm flattered."

"Fine, change the subject if you want." He took his set at the shuttle's front, his armored back twice the size of the chair. Why she found that appealing was becoming a misery even to her. She took a long breath, head resting against the cold metal. It was not like it was classified information and if he asked anyone of the crew he could find out. If he were curious enough.

"Me and Shepard, we go back to our military days. From when we first joined… We were actually bunk bed mates." He turned to look at her, chair squeaking under the strain.

"You? In the military?" She rolled her eyes and sat in the front closer to him, helmet besides her.

"Now who's being mean?" She kicked him lightly in the side of his armored thigh and crossed her hands. It was not really easy speaking about the past, but he didn't have to know that. At least not yet and not from her own mouth. "I made it all the way to Operations chief if you must know. Not quite as impressive as Commander, I suppose, but all things considered…"

"Rough start?" More like rough ending. Or was it… middle?

"Something like that."

"I can understand that." He nodded and fully spun the chair to face her. He had a serious expression on, brows drawn and lips downturned. "What made you join the military though?"

"I… don't know, there didn't seem to be a lot of options at the time. I always had a thing for tinkering and mechanics and, well, after my parents died I sort of just enlisted."  
"I'm sorry."

"Thanks. It was a long time ago though. Lab experiment gone wrong, whole wing exploded… In hindsight, I might have been rebelling against them for leaving me all alone in the world, and chose not to become a scientist like they were and enlisting instead. How silly of me." She looked at her hands for a moment, flexing the fingers on her left. James thought to make sure he looks for any old scars on that hand, despite being pretty sure both had pristine skin. It amazed him she had military training at all, even if she was proving quite useful in battle. "But what about you, what childhood trauma made you want to shoot aliens in outer space?"

"It's always been my dream to join the military. My uncle always encouraged me to follow that dream and here I am, babysitting you in the shuttle while Earth burns." There was no malice towards her, rather sadness.

"Was it just you and your uncle?" He pondered whether to answer or not. It was personal information he did not usually share, but Jun told her fair share of her past and he felt like he owed it.

"Got a father too, but… After mom passed, my uncle Josh was more of a father to me than he ever was."

"I see. Still must have been nice to have someone supporting you…"

"Yeah, don't know where I'd be without him." It was partially a lie, James was pretty sure he'd ended up either in prison or his father errand boy. Neither outcome was pretty.

"Your uncle still around?"

"Yeah, California."

"Oh."

"He's a tough one. I'm sure he's alright."

"You can ask EDI back on the ship if she can locate him. Or I can give it a go. I'm not the best with pistols or close quarters, but I'm a mean hack and information gatherer."

"Thanks, I'd really appreciate it."

"No problem." She smiled. A big, warm smile and to him she looked so innocent in that moment, not a bad bone in her body. He wondered for the hundred time how she ended up in Separd's mismatched crew, but at the same time grateful for her presence there.

"And thanks for earlier with the mech, I can get a bit reckless."

"That how you got those scars?" She pointed to her own lip and cheek mirroring the scars on his face. Before he could answer Shepard called for help on the comlinks.

"That's a story for another time." The shuttle came to life under his hands, just as the commander's voice became more urgent."Hold on tight, princess!"

"Could you please stop calling m-" She yelped in surprise as the shuttle zapped more than flew, her poor helmet flying and crashing somewhere in the back. It took all her strength to manage to put her seat belt on and just in time.

"Hope you're all strapped in cause it's gonna be bumpy." She barely had time to deploy a defensive drone as the shuttle hit something and Jun's world started spinning. The small drone buzzed to life with a force field around them both and she was never more grateful for it. Images flashed through her mind as bile rose to her throat: the enemy ship from years ago, her former squad, the hot pain that followed and that blasted hospital bed she thought she'd never leave. They were jolted once more, the belt holding her down by sheer miracle, as the shuttle made a hard landing. James laughed somewhere, but the room was still a whirlwind.

"We got that bastard!"

She untangles herself hasty from the belt before he could see the tears streaming down her face. She reached her helmet, letting herself crash in front of it, her entire body shacking. She thought she was over all that shit, it was supposed to be all behind, but apparently it only took one suicidal marine to relive the horror. As she reached for the helmet, right hand trembling, left one steady, she almost smirked; the past left a pretty deep cut after all.

"You-,are absolutely crazy!" She chocked on the first word, mustering all her power not to sound like a wimp.

"Ah live a little, princess." He helped her up and out of the shuttle, her legs still shaking like jelly. A smirk came to his lips as he leaned in to whisper. "I got better ways to leave you weak in the knees like this." His voice was low and he was so, so close. She was grateful for the helmet covering her face, for she was sure she was red as a tomato, both from her little panic episode and his flirty comment. Jun was no prude, but not exactly used to guys being so direct like the lieutenant was. She found she didn't quite mind it. He was probably like this all the time with everyone, like some soldiers tended to be, so she decided to play along.

"I'll take to almost dying any day, next time ask for preferences, will you?" She looked at him throw the helmet's visor, his cocky grin making her almost want to headbutt him. "But seriously, I ain't never getting in the shuttle if you're playing suicidal pilot.

Another explosion and gunshots rang close by and James let go of her and rushed towards it. She stumbled for a few more steps before jogging after him. The commander's voice rand loudly and Jun knew something was wrong. She dashed towards the fallen major, medigel and First aid ready.


	3. Chapter 3

Kaidan was still unconscious despite Jun's best efforts to heal him. She was no medic, but his head had been pretty banged up and there was really no way to tell how affected his implants were. She spied Shepard from the corner of her eye and cursed the major under her breath. The last thing the commander needed was to worry about his sorry ass.

"I did all I could, but we have to get him to the Citadel asap. Someone has to check on his amps."

"Right. Joker, get us to the Citadel."

"Alright commander. Meanwhile, you've got Hackett on the line." She left in a hurry, sealing one more glance at the major's still form. Jun turned to him as well, wishing there was something more she could do to help. She missed Dr. Chakwas, the older woman would have been all over the situation in no time. Liara came around the bed, gentle hand placed on Jun's shoulder. The asari had a way about her that was soothing and Jun was grateful for it. Perhaps it was her voice.

"Do you think he's going to make it?"

"He's like one of those cockroaches from Earth, bastard's gonna outlive us all."

"I hope you're right, for the commander's sake." She left soon after, excusing herself to go examine the blueprints. Jun hoped they had been worth it, because while Kaidan was a pain in the ass, he was still part of the crew, part of Shepard's little family of misfits and one of their oldest friend. She'd miss the bastard, though probably not as much as the commander. She noticed James leaning on the wall besides the door as she finally got up to leave.

"So the commander and him." They were so obvious even the marine put two and two together and figured it out. The world was ending, actually, a lot of worlds were being eradicated, so she doubted anyone cared for regs those days.

"Why do you care? Shepard got you all heart eyed, too?" She punched him lightly on the shoulder as they exited the room towards the mess hall. She needed sometime to eat. "He enlisted around the same time we did, they also go way back."

"Doesn't really explain why you hate him so much... you sure _you_ don't have a thing for him, princess?" With the most serious expression she could muster she turned to him with her hand on her chest as if offended, stopping him in his tracks.

"I would rather go on a suicide shuttle ride with you again than ever considering Alenko."

"I'm just that irresistible." Jun shook her head, smile cracking through her poker face. The lieutenant was good company, a change in scenery from the otherwise overly serious people on the crew. She would stay up with Joker in the cockpit, but since he'd been getting along with EDI more and more it was sometimes hard for her to follow their inside jokes.

"Anyway, I don't actually hate him... I hate that after all the years he's known us, fought alongside the commander, he still can't get his head out of his ass and trust, if not us, at lest her. Anderson and Hackett sing her praise with every chance, yet Alenko seems he wants to prove she's a god dammed traitor."

"The Cerberus thing?"

"Yep. She was basically dead, in a coma for two years. Then when she wakes up she asks about him every chance she gets... and he's angry she didn't call him..."

"If they're so close why didn't she?"

"He was on some kind of classified mission, no one told us where he was, just that he was alive and well."

" Guy has issues then. "

" Don't we all? " He raised an eyebrow and smirked, his ego basically bursting at the seems. "Oh please, don't act like you're above this."

"What? Can't help if I'm perfect."

"Aha, right. And I'm a krogan shaman"

"Never knew their shamans were so..."

"Hot? Beautiful? Wise beyond their years?" He leaned forward getting dangerously close, the scar on his lower lip pulling his smirk in an extremely appealing way. The man was right, he was close to irresistible.

"I was going to say _squishy_."

"Hm, well I guess you're not exactly wrong. But hey, you can't have it all, right?" She shrugged and watched those damn lips widen in a full cocky grin. "I mean, not all of us can be as perfect as you."

They passed a few more friendly banters as they grabbed some food from the mess hall. Not a lot of options since they were without a cook now as well. Jun really hoped they were going to get him back before they headed in the next crazy mission. It would be even sadder if they'd die on an empty stomach. It would have been nice to gather the entire old crew, after all what more important things they'd have to attend to besides the extinction of all they're races. She missed Tali the most. The two had become fast friends working on different parts of the Normandy and exchanging ideas. The quarian was just the sweetest girl ever. And then there was Kasumi; the woman was a blast to hang with and the two enjoined sneaking in on Jacob's training sessions. Jun looked James up and down again admiring the way his muscles flexed as he opened the fringe door for the third time. She was sure Kasumi would agree with her, the lieutenant was a walking work of art.

They arrived at the Citadel in short time, Normandy at full speed. They were already waiting for them at the docking bay and Kaidan was hauled away to the hospital before Jun got to the exit. She was unsure if they should follow Shepard to the hospital, the woman looked like she wanted to be alone for a moment. And besides, she really hated hospitals. Huerta Memorial held memories from the worst period of her short life. But the commander stopped, C-sec's officer Bailey coming into view and telling them the Council was waiting for them. There was conflict in the commander's eyes, but Jun nudges her a little.

"Go see Kaidan. The Council can wait a few minutes." Shepard nodded, the decision already taken. The group quickly dispersed, Liara choosing to attend to the Council and prepare their findings of the blueprint. Before Bailey turned to leave as well, he shot her and James a look.

"What about you two?"

"I'm just a tourist this time." The lieutenant put his hands up, excusing himself from any of the political implications and Jun saw the perfect opportunity to get out as well. She couldn't stand Udina and if the meeting was anything like the last one, she might not resist to throat punch him.

"I'll make sure he doesn't get in trouble." She smiled politely at the officer and he bid them good luck in their mission. When she turned towards James, he was already at one of the tall windows overlooking the Presidium. She approached casually and regarded the view as well, the opulence and serenity of it all.

"Been here before?"

"To the Citadel yeah, but never up here on the Presidium."His hands gripped the railing until his knuckles turned white, his jaw clenched tight. She understood his anger perfectly, the richest and most "important" beings lived here while in other parts of the universe people were fighting for scraps. But that was not something unique about the Citadel, it happened everywhere. And in some ways it was natural for the people in power to gather in such a place, even if perhaps they did not deserve said power to begin with. Life was unfair like that, she'd gotten used to it long ago. "This place is wrong, so calm while Earth is burning. As if the war isn't going to reach them too soon."

"It's a facade, Vega. If you look closely you can see they're all scared." She turned to watch the people on the hallway they were in, elbows resting behind her on the rail. "See that guy over there on the phone? He was asking about his son when we passed by him. Those asari by the elevator, they're being called back on their planet. Probably preparing for the reapers to hit Thessia... It may still look grand, but it's as much a hell hole like any other if you put it under a microscope. A shiny, skyscraper filled hell hole." She watched the creases in his brow lessen as he took a closer look around them.

"You spent a lot of time here?" James watched her face change completely, lips pressed in a thin line and eyes narrowing and he realized he'd hit some sensitive subject. She was silent for so long he'd thought they'd just dropped the subject.

"Well I kinda live here I guess."

"You guess?"

"Yeah, I mean I haven't for a while... but I have a little apartment in the Wards. But it's not like I bought it or anything. It belonged to my parents. I didn't even know about it until I was... well..."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose, taking a long breath of air.

"I spent a while in the hospital after the... military thing. When I got out I was told I had an apartment here. It makes sense I guess, my parents used to travel to the Citadel a lot, but it just never crossed my young mind they actually had a place here, you know. Lucky me." James thought her reluctance to share had something to do with her parents, but now he was even more curious about her being in the hospital. He decided not to push the issue though. They were practically still strangers and she owed him no in depth story of her life.

"Come on."

"Where we going? "

"You need a drink."

"Apollo's Cafe?"

"I was thinking lower." They were going to work on the strangers part and what a better way to get to know a fellow soldier than behind a glass of batarian ale.

Purgatory was packed as usual, the music audible as soon as they stepped out of the elevator. James made his way through the crowd, the little engineer in tow, and secured a spot at the bar for them. There, the mood was more visibly desperate than on the Presidium, people drinking away their fear and sorrow for the fallen. He turned towards Jun now perked on a high stool next to him, her eyes wide and searching.

"What are you drinking?"

"Um, whatever you're having."

"You never explored this far, princess?" He chuckled and ordered his ale and some asari honey mead for her, deciding he didn't want her in an alcohol induced coma. Shepard would kick his ass.

"Hmm, what gave me away?"

"You look like a lost puppy." She cocked her neck and looked curiously at him, lips pursed in a child like manner. If not for the standard alliance uniform she was wearing, she would have looked nothing like a soldier in that moment. He was even more taken aback by her next words.

"I've never seen a puppy."

"How could- Really?"

"Yeah, I saw a few of those big military dogs, but never an actual puppy. Anyway I think I'm more of a cat person. Saw one of them bastards on Earth last month and nearly took it with me."

"But you did your military training on Earth, right?"

"Some of it." She drowned the glass in one swift movement, the subject clearly touchy. "Look, I've been to Earth twice, once for the military when I spent most of my time on base and now after Shepard turned herself in. Did a little exploring this time around, but can't say I've actually seen much." He took a long drag from his own glass, the familiar burn tingling his throat. It was a shame so many humans were so far away from their home planet, Earth was a wonder like none he'd ever seen. "I've always been a little envious of those who lived back there. Out here, there's no place that's really your own, you know?"

"There's no place like it." He hadn't wanted his voice to sound so broken, but he was reminded of his uncle, the warm days spent on the beaches and the giant robots trampling everything there. The cold fingers on his arm brought him out of memory lane, her hand looking so fragile on him.

"We're going to get Earth back." The emotion on her face was almost palpable, she wore her heart on the shelve like none other and he found himself wondering out loud.

"How did someone like you end up on this crazy crew?"

"Someone like me? What's so different about me?" He regarded her for a moment, her unscathed skin, doe like eyes and soft hand still on his arm. What was different about her? Everything, but not in a bad way. She could pull her weight in a fight and was trustworthy enough for Anderson and Shepard to keep her around. She had her fair share of past trauma and was by all means, an Alliance officer.

"Didn't mean it as an insult..."

"What did you mean by it then?"

"Look, I saw you are capable on the battle field and you even saved my ass back on Mars."

"But? Courage Vega, I don't bite. Too hard." She pulled back her hand, but broke into a smile and he relaxed. He thought he might have offended her, yet there she was trying to make him uncomfortable. It was going to take a lot more for her to make him blush.

"But you're so... soft."

"Soft?"

"Yeah, you don't look like... i don't know. You don't have that haunted look in your eyes the others have." Her fingers curled around her long empty glass, thumb slowly dragging on the rim. She was serious for a moment, making James think he overstepped that time. She lost her parents young, enlisted, been injured gravely enough that she didn't want to talk about it and survived Shepard's mission on the Collector's base. She'd seen her fair share of gore and surely had her own demons, probably hidden deep below the pretty surface. Why couldn't he hold his mouth shut some times? But the moment passed and she turned towards him with a wicked little grin and he couldn't help but smile as well.

"Looks can be deceiving, lieutenant. Or you're not looking close enough."

"Oh? You want me closer, cariño?"

"Well the view ain't that bad, though I've certainly seen better." She lifted her glass, pointing at him with it and changing the subject at the same time. "One more, then we go get some noodles. I'm starving!"James chuckled and ordered them two more drinks. He enjoined her presence, liked that he could be his flirty self and voice concerns without having to explain or excuse himself. And for brief moments, time until they return to Earth seemed to pass just a little faster.


	4. Chapter 4

The Observation Deck was a wreck, with metal scraps and wires trailing from one end to the other. A few pads and monitors bleeped alive with colorful writings all around the L shaped couch. The only "clean" part of the room was the improvised cot in the far left corner. But there was order in the chaos of tech. Jun knew exactly where things were and each served a precise purpose. Most importantly, it made the place feel like home. The only thing amiss was one depressed looking commander staring blankly into the dark void ahead.

"Weight of the world on your shoulders again, huh?"

"Fells like it will never end. We warn them, they ignore us and then we struggle on our own to save everyone. A vicious cycle."

"I don't know, this one seems pretty final. I mean, the reapers were the end game from the start, right?" She placed a hand on the other woman's shoulder, squeezing just enough to grab her attention from the stars outside. They locked eyes and she wished she could do more to help Shepard carry that weight. "Just one more, then it's shore leave, baby! I'm thinking of visiting more of Earth." The commander smiled sheepishly at her.

"You? On Earth? Vega got to you that badly?"

"Pff no, we're just passing time." She realized the possible interpretation as soon as the words left her mouth and she paused a bit to reconsider. "Wait, that sounded wrong. We just get along, that's all. Nothing weird happening between us."

"Mhm."

"He flirts like that with everyone, I wouldn't look too much into it."

"If you say so. But it looks pretty different from the outside." What looked different? Jun was pretty sure she figured him all out: he was just a fun guy, masking his inner demons from a shitty childhood probably, with little flirts and jokes. She doubted he'd actually put any of those naughty things that came out of his mouth into practice. He was all bark and no bite and she was perfectly okay with it.

"How's Kaidan?"

"He's awake already. Might have been worse if you weren't there to take action so fast. Thank you."

"Any time, Shep. You do know I don't actually hate him, right? Damn, I've been saying this a lot lately."

"I know. I'm sure he knows it too."

"I do hope he gets over himself..."

"Jun!"

"Ok, ok, I promise to try to be nicer to him when he gets back." She put her hands up in defeat, noting the small smile playing on the commander's lips, and went to sit on the clear spot on the couch. Shepard's eyes followed her, then scanned the state of the room, brows slightly furrowed.

"You working on something?"

"Yeah, you'll see soon enough. EDI's helping me with... a pet project."

"Something for fighting?" Jun raised her head from the little circuits she was working on and looked the commander dead in the eyes.

"Well it wasn't going to, but that could actually be pretty cool." She turned to regard the pieces in front of her, a new spark in her voice. "I'd have to make it a little bigger to make room for the additional systems and reinforce the other layer. The shielding will be easy enough, so I'll figure that one last... but... yeah, _that_ would be neat. Can't wait to test this baby out!"

"You got me a little curious. But make sure you check on that Cerberus robot soon. I want it off the ship as soon as possible."

"I'm on it." She didn't raise her head from pile of wires she was sorting out as the commander left her room. She was completely engrossed in the possibilities this new idea brought. Claws! Now that would be awesome. It wouldn't be as efficient as any of her current drones, but it would be marvelous to watch her little creation in battle. After a little fun in a test drive, it could stay on the Normandy as a little extra defense. Never repeat the situation with Joker and the Collectors again. When EDI's voice sounded above her she was almost done modifying the outer carcass.

"Jun, I was wondering if you could help me with something as well?"

"Sure, EDI. What do you need?"

"I was scanning the Cerberus unit for more Prothean data, but I can't run a full diagnostic."

"Yeah, I'll check for anything useful in a minute."

"I would be more suitable for the job as I already have all the system mapped out."

"Then... what do you need me for?"

"It would be more accurate if I had a psychical link to the unit?" Jun dropped the little laser she was using and looked at the ceiling as if the AI would be pocking though it.

"You want me to plug an unsafe Cerberus unit to your main core?"

"Yes. I have located an appropriate cable in the Shuttle bay."

"That's a bad idea EDI, even for my standards."

"If I had any doubt of failure I wouldn't have asked." There was the briefest of pauses, not giving Jun the occasion to shut her down again. "Plus, as you said before, you 'owe me one'."

"Shepard will never allow it..."

"It will be our little secret."

"You're getting cheekier by the minute, girl! Hot damn!" Pinching the bridge of her nose, she thought about the outcomes. "I can't believe I'm actually considering this... But, I will run some diagnostics first, see how dangerous that thing can still be, okay?"

"If it will help ease your mind."

With a final look at the piece she had been working on and a long sigh, Jun made her way to the Shuttle Bay. The elevator ride there was long, her mind filled with questions about what they were about to do. One one hand EDI was right, she'd be faster and more thorough in her search, but on the other hand they were sort of going behind Shepard's back, though not doing anything particularly nefarious. She was hoping the commander would never know the full scope of their little rebellion, but when did she ever get what she wanted?

The double doors hissed open and she casually stepped into the shuttle bay. She'd never spend much time down there and was unsure where they kept spare parts and all that jazz. But as she rounded the corner she was met with a sight she did not expect: James Vega doing pull ups. And what a sight it was! With his back towards her, she could ogle him without shame, glorious muscles going taunt every time he lifted himself. The expanse of his back, even through the sweat ridden t-shirt, was just calling for her to run her greedy little fingers on. She found herself wishing what the commander said was true, and he did act differently around her, flirted just a bit more, with just a hint of seriousness to his words. Or maybe his eyes would linger on her a second more they did on others.

"Quite the view, isn't it?" Jun's spirit almost left her body, both from surprise and shame for being caught drooling all over the lieutenant. She was happy the man spoke loud enough for just her to hear.

"Umm, well, like I told him, I've seen better."

"Oh, that must have hurt, but I guess his ego didn't need to grow any bigger." The man looked fondly towards the lieutenant and Jun got the impression they were close, the kind that taunted each other a lot. He turned towards her shortly after, hand outstretched. "Steve Cortez, I'm the new shuttle pilot."

"Oooh that's great, no one should suffer through Vega's piloting skills ever again. Jun Saros." She shook his hand energetically, genuinely happy they now had an actual pilot for the damn shuttle. Besides Joker, there was no one on the blasted ship who could drive anything, her stomach would still turn when someone even mentioned the Mako.

"So you're Jun."

"You've heard of me?"

"A little bit." A smirk plaid on his lips as he gestured towards the still busy lieutenant. It took Jun every ounce of self control and dignity not to turn her focus back on his work out. "But Saros... why does that sound familiar?" She felt like she might have paled a few shades, but if her discomfort showed, Cortez said nothing about it and before she could change the subject he remembered, his eyes widening the second he made the connection. "Were you on Torfan?"

"Um, well... yes..."

"Impressive. I'm glad too see you're up and kicking."

"It's been, a long journey, but um, thanks." She wished, for a brief moment, that she could just teleport back to her little tech cluttered room and bury herself in research and possibly never speak to any living being again. She knew she didn't really want that and one day she'll have to get over it and talk about... Hell, it might even help to actually talk abut it. But that day was not the day and thankfully the Cortez guy was empathic enough to see she was dying on the inside and changed the subject.

"You were looking for something down here? Maybe I can help."

"Yes actually, I need a Y72 cable."

"Ah yes, I've seen it a few days ago. I'll get it for you." She watched him go deeper into the bay, behind the shuttle. She was waiting, a little impatient to get out of there, when she noticed the little white robot dog running around the room. Now that was interesting. She got just a little closer and crouched in it's path. It came closer, before making a small turn as if to avoid her, but she was faster. She made fast work, opening the small panel on it's back and examining the infrastructure. It had an odd choice of head and no functional mouth. Weren't dogs supposed to fetch things? And with no fur, petting it or "rubbing its belly" seemed pointless, even if may have been programmed to act like it enjoined the action.

"I don't think that's the way to play with it." How was he so silent on his feet when he was so damn bulky? She lifted her gaze and almost swore under her breath. James was, well, hot and it was affecting her a little more than she cared for. Maybe it had been all the commander's fault, putting ideas in her head. Or maybe it had been there all along, but whatever the case, it was not good.

"I was just curious what makes it tick. And also what's its purpose..."

"Yeah, this one's a little weird, but he grows on you." When she close the panel, the dog came back "to life" and made a few circles around James. It was probably designed just as a companion to show affection, maybe for a small child even, but the lieutenant was right, the more you starred at it the cutter it got.

"Well he seems to like you, Vega."

"It's because I spend a lot of time down here. Not a lot of people come this far except when we leave for missions." He scratch the back of his neck, thick, strong neck... _Get it together, Saros!_ "Speaking of which, why are _you_ here? Missed me already, cariño?"

"She was actually here for this." She ignored the question altogether and took the cable from Cortez, thanking to the stars he came when he did, for she might have actually said something positively retarded.

"Thank you. And it was nice meeting you. I look forward to next mission now that Vega isn't in the pilot's seat."

"Oh come on, we all got there and back in one piece."

"If it could, the poor shuttle would argue with that." She poked her tongue out, already backing away towards the elevator. "I've got to go finish something, see you guys around."

James waved her goodbye, eyes never leaving her until the elevator doors closed behind her. He wanted to ask if she needed help with anything, but he doubted he could actually understand anything of what she'd be working on. Nevertheless, he was weirdly interested in her passion for tech. His smile dropped a bit when he noticed Cortez' worried look.

"What?"

"You have no idea who she is, do you?"

"What are you getting at, jefe?"

"She was on Torfan. Their ship had been badly hit, they were abandoning it, but she went back alone and crashed the entire thing in an enemy dreadnought. She saved her entire team that day." It took James a few moments to process the information, mostly because it seemed surreal: Jun, sweet and fun Jun, piloting a burning ship into another. Steve saw the questioning look in his friend's eyes and continued. "I don't know the full story, they kept it pretty quiet for some reason. All I remember was that she was badly injured and they graduate her early from N7 for her service."

The first thing James thought about was how distraught she had been when he crashed the shuttle, how fast she hid her face, knees giving in under her and her voice cracking up. He felt like a jackass, especially with the comment he'd made. How was she still talking to him? He was beyond curious to find out more about about her accident and why she never mentioned she was N7. Most wore it like a sign on pride, but Jun didn't once talk about it. If anything, she avoided any topic slightly relating her time in with the Alliance before Shepard's suicide mission. He was sure the commander knew everything, but it didn't seem fair to pry. Even the bits of information Steve had told him felt like an invasion in her personal life she hadn't wanted to be known. He was sure curiosity would take the best of him sooner or later, though. He might at least apologize and ask Jun herself. Soon.

Back in the AI core, Jun was having a different dilemma. She had ran all the diagnostics she could think of, and a few suggested by EDI despite the cheeky AI probably already having done them. EDI had been patient with her, only cracking a few jokes about the speed process, but otherwise not pestering Jun to plug the robot to her main terminal. She had been staring at the still form of the robot a good fifteen minutes, having ran out of precautions she could take, but not yet ready to take a plunge.

"I'm going to regret this..."

"There is no scenario where we fail, the probability of success-"

"There's always one more variable we didn't account for, one more surprise factor we didn't notice..." She pinched the bridge of her nose, fatigue settling in. After this, a hot shower and sleep until they reached Palavan. "Alas, here we go. Anything goes wrong, you back out of there and tell me to unplug this thing." With her onmi-tool on hand in case the worst came to pass, Jun hooked one end of the cable in Dr. Eva's back, the other in EDI's terminal.

What followed were a few seconds straight out of those old "man vs machine" movies. The robot's eyes opened, a few moments of disorientation, before fixing on Jun. She barely had enough time to duck and evade the first shot. Cloaking her self, she wanted to move from her current position, thinking she could sneak behind her and unplug. She didn't get far before one of the shots ignited a fire and the extinguishers turned on, blocking her vision. The whole ordeal must have lasted less than half a minute, but the stress certainly took one year out of Jun's life. The panel above the console had gone dark, was EDI alright? Was the ship alright? Joker had probably freaked out and already alerted Shepard who was going to barge through the door in any second!

"Jun, are you alright?"

"EDI?" She peaked from behind her hiding spot, the air clearing enough to see the robot lady, thankfully not shooting at her anymore.

"Yes, I have taken control of this unit." It was said so matter-of-factly that Jun wondered if that had been the AI's plan all along. Shepard's voice rang loudly from the other side of the door, but she just sank back on the ground, headache drumming at her temples.

"This is going to be a fun one to explain."


End file.
